Councils for the Environment and Infrastructure (RLI)
The Council for the Rural Area (RLG) - Raad voor het Landelijk Gebied
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Raden voor de Leefomgeving en infrastructuur: tav. Raad voor het Landelijk Gebied (RLG) As from 1 September, RLG has a common office with the VROMraad at this address: Nieuwe Uitleg 1 2514 BP Den Haag p.a.: Postbus 90653 2509 EX Den-Haag, The Netherlands Tel. +31 704562070 Fax. +31 704562071 secretariaat@rli.nl www.rlg.nl | www.rli.nl |
Establishment and Mission
Council Members and Staff Members
Current and Future Activities
Since 1 January 2010, the Council for the Rural Area has a common secretariat with the VROM-raad and the Advisory Council for Transport, Public Works and Water Management (RVW) under the name Councils for the Environment and Infrastructure (RLI). This has the following consequences:
In 2010 the council will be developing a variety of activities, both individually and jointly together with VROM-raad en RVW:
- Firstly, the council will provide follow-up for reports published in 2009
- secondly, the council will publish new joint reports which will also serve to contribute towards the decision-making process with regard to proposals arising from the 'broad-based expenditure reviews' (see parliamentary paper (Kamerstuk) 2009 - 2010, 32123, nr. 25, House of Representatives)
- finally, the council will invest in the process of strategic agenda setting and the identification of issues for the next few years in order to develop a robust long-term advisory programme. Exploratory studies will be set up to this end.
Present Priority Fields
The 2010 joint work programme contains five advisory reports, three advisory
letters and one exploratory study. New advisory report subjects from the joint
work programme for 2010
1) 'Broad-based expenditure reviews' in the integrated perspective of the living
environment (advisory letter / publication in the 3rd quarter of 2010)
2) Responding to Climate Change (advisory letter / publication the 1st quarter
of 2011)
3) Departure points for the national implementation of the EU Marine Strategy
(publication in the 1st quarter of 2011)
4) Dealing with dike safety standards (publication in the second half of
2010)
5) Area-specific policy (publication in 2011)
6) Roadmap to a sustainable city (publication in 2011)
7) From 'big city' to 'metropolitan' policy (publication in 2011)
8) The future of Dutch agriculture (exploratory study for a later report)
9) Departure points for a Common Agricultural Policy (advisory letter /
publication in 2011)
Former priorities
In 2009 the RLG had the following priorities:
- Shrinking population: opportunities for the rural area
- Fallow field
- Coral reefs in the Netherlands
- Colour Me Green (Kleur bekennen)
- Farmers with a Green Heart
For even earlier priorities, see the following links:
Priorities and advisory programme 2009
Priorities and advisory programme 2008
Priorities and advisory programme 2007
Priorities and advisory programme 2006
Priorities and advisory programme 2005
Previous priorities and advisory programme 2004
Previous priorities and advisory programmes 2002-2003
Previous priorities and advisory programmes 2000-2001
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Background
Establishment
The Advisory Council for the Rural Area (RLG) was statutorily set up by
the Law on the Council for the Rural Area in combination with the
Framework Law on Advisory Councils, and is one of the
broadly based advisory councils in the advisory system of the Dutch
Government.
The Minister of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries
established this
Council in 1997. Independent advisory bodies have a solid basis in the
The RLG was set up on 28 January 1997, by the Minister of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries.
The council is currently under reconstruction. Together with the Council for Housing, Spatial Planning & the Environment (VROM-Raad) and the Council for Transport and Water Management will be bundled in a new 'Councils for the Environment and Infrastructure' (RLI). The new council secretariat has been installed on 1 January 2010. The councils will merge in the future.
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Mission
The Council advises the Dutch Government and both Chambers of Parliament on strategic policy questions concerning the rural area, nature, agriculture and food quality. Considering this advisory task, the Council intends to take the concept of rural area broadly. The RLG's advice is also focused on nature, recreation and businesses connected with agriculture in and around urban areas.
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Council members
As of 9 July 2010 the RLG counts 3
Council Members. The law prescribes that its
members
must be independent and that they must be appointed on the basis of
their
expertise in the sphere of activity for which the Council was
established, and
for their knowledge and their experience in society and governance. The Queen appoints new members of the council on advice by the
Minister of Agriculture.
| Chairman Antoon J.A.M. Vermeer |
Chair of the council of commissioners of Vion, Vice-chair of the council of commissioners of Rabobank |
| Ellen Verkoelen | Independent advisor |
| Prof. dr. ir. Gerrit Meester | Chair of the Agricultural Committee of the OECD |
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Staff Members
The Council has a secretariat with around 25 staff. Ron Hillebrand is the director.
Work Style
Tasks of the Council
The Council seek to give independent, solid and compact advice on strategic issues for the medium and long term that matches the policy agenda; independent advice that offer policymakers perspectives and that stimulate societal discussions and public debate.
The advisory reports are accomplished in an open consultation process. For every advisory project the Council composes a working group of Council members supplemented by external experts. This group, supported by staff members, prepares the advice. In this, the Council applies various forms of external consultation. The Council's staff plays an important role in organising and co-ordinating these activities, and in fitting and integrating the results in the advice.
The Council develops its joint annual advisory programme in consultation with the department. The advisory programme has been approved by the government. The Council is free to add important issues but is expected to inform the minister of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality about these new issues.
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Council Meetings
To be confirmed
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Type of Advice
The Advisory Programme of the council contains issues formulated by the government or by own initiative of the council.
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Activities in the EEAC Network
- The RLG was involved in the early years of the network and became member when membership was introduced in 1997.
- RLG co-hosted the 5th Annual Conference 1997 on Self Regulation within Society together with the Dutch RMNO and VROM-Raad.
- RLG chaired the EEAC Working Group Agriculture from 1999-2000 and organized a meeting on WTO and European agriculture, and a conference on the European Model of Agriculture.
- RLG chaired the EEAC Working Group Agriculture 2003 - 2009 a number of meetings and seminars were held. With the following result:
-In 2005, together with the Hungarian OKT, the RLG organised a conference on rural development: Rural Resources at Risk.
-In January 2007 and June 2007 the council organised two seminars and developed a website with facts and figures about the implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy in the 27 Member States (www.rlg.nl/cap). These activities are summarized in 'Activity Report 2007 'Globalisation, Land Use Change and the Common Agricultural Policy'.
-In June 2009 the RLG organised a seminar called Land us in an Era of Global Change after which it produced a report: "Land use in an Era of Global Change" (pdf, 5,27 MB).
- RLG was member of the Task force in 2005-2006.
- From 2006 on RLG has coordinated the Forward Looking Group and the Annual Forward Looking paper.
- RLG has been represented in the Steering Committee of EEAC in 2007-2009
- Since 2010 RLG will be represented, together with members of the VROM-Raad and RVW, as RLI within EEAC.
- The RLI is involved actively as member of the Working Groups Agriculture, Biodiversity Sustainable Development/Governance, Energy and Marine.
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List of Selected Publications
Not all the advisory reports have an English summary. The data below reach back, furthermore, to 2001 only. For a full list of reports and publications, see http://eeac.hscglab.nl/.
- RLI
report: Make room for renewal. (Dutch - July 2010)
- Fallow
field (Dutch, November 2009 - English summary)
- Shrinking population: opportunities for the rural area (Dutch, December
2009)
- Coral
reefs in the Netherlands, advice on the support of nature policy on the
BES islands (June 2009);
- Farmers
with a Green Heart: recommendations for the future of agriculture in the
Green Heart (Dutch, June 2009 - English summary);
- Colour
me Green: recommendations on the need for cultural diversity in green
education and the green labour market (Dutch, February 2009 - English Summary);
- Green enterprise: advice on the role of private
initiatives in green development in rural and urban areas (Dutch, October 2008 - English summary);
- Home-grown energy: advice on regional opportunities relating to biomass (Dutch, June 2008 - English summary);
- Growing up green: advice on a more cohesive green youth policy (Dutch, June 2008 - English summary);
- Around the table: advice on and about food quality, (Dutch, May 2008 - English summary);